Just a bad dream
by EbilMe666
Summary: The Once-Ler gets knocked out and is asleep for 5 days, during that time he dreams that his Thneed gets big and that he kills the forest. When he wakes up the Lorax is surprised to see that he has given up on making the Thneed a success. Rated K plus just to be safe. It is probably suitable for a K rating though. Based on the 2012 film.


**Disclaimer: I do not own The Lorax in any way, shape or form.**

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_"Well, that's it. The very last one." The Lorax says, grimly. "That may stop you." I look at the tree and stand up. I realize that he was right. It was the last one. 'What have I done?' I think to myself. The Lorax walks off, his disappointment obvious. My family's RV stops in front of me. I somehow manage to contain the tears that are threatening to fall.  
"Son. You have let me down." My mother says. "Bret! You are now my favorite child." She then drives the RV off, dust flies into my face. This wasn't what was meant to happen. My Thneed was meant to make her proud of me. Meant to make her see I'm not worthless. I watch as the RV dissappears over the hills and turn._

_I see the Lorax. He's standing on a ring of stones. The Bar-Ba-Loots, Swomee Swans and Humming Fish appear behind him. Panic shoots through me.  
"Hey, look, I don't want any trouble." I say, I know that if they attack then there is no way I could over power them.  
"And you won't get any, not from them." The Lorax says. The animals begin to walk away, through the forest of dead stumps. "Thanks to you with your hacking and smogging and glupping, they can't live here any more. So I'm sending them off. Hopefully they'll be able to find a better place out there somewhere." _

_All I was thinking as he said it was 'this is all my fault.' I look into the crowd of animals and see my donkey. "Melvin?" I ask. "Melvin!" I call, running up to him. I put my hand out but he just keeps walking. "Hey, Pipsqueak!" I say as I see the small Bar-Ba-Loot I have grown to love. He turns to face me, sadness in his big, brown eyes. "Hey.." I say, offering him a marshmallow. He turns away and keeps walking._

_I turn back to the Lorax who hasn't moved from the ring of stones. I take my hat off and look at him. He looks at me, sadness and disappointment in his eyes. He shakes his head and closes his eyes. He pulls on his tail and floats into the sky. I reach out slightly but then I think better of it and lower my hand. I watch him floating into the last patch of clear sky. My last friend left me. I am alone. I turn to look at the ring of stones and walk forwards to them I see the word that the Lorax had left for me. Unless._

_The tears I had been holding in overflow my eyes and fall down my face. I drop the hat I'd been holding, the wind takes it. I sink to my knees and put my face in my hands, the gloves quickly become soaked with the salt water._

"Wake up!"

_I look up. That was the Lorax's voice. Where had it come from? He had left me._

"Beanpole, Wake up!"

_I look around. Where was the voice coming from? It seemed to be everywhere. And that nickname, he hadn't called be Beanpole for a very long time. What is going on?_

"BEANPOLE!"

The noise startled the Once-Ler awake. He looked disorientated. "Are you okay?" The Lorax asked him, noticing the tears that were still falling from his eyes.  
"Wh- What happened?" The Once-Ler asked, his throat sore and his voice scratchy. He looked around, getting his bearings. He was in his house, on his bed. A Bar-Ba-Loot gave him a glass of water which he gratefully took. He drank it and it soothed his throat. "Just a dream." He whispers to himself. A small smile forming on his face.  
"Well, you failed at selling your thing again and came back here.." The Lorax started. "One thing led to another and well.. you sorta got knocked out.." The Lorax paused to look at the Once-Ler who was looking confused but motioned for him to continue. "You were asleep for 5 days and then, a few minutes ago you started crying.."  
"5 days?" The Once-Ler asked quietly. The Lorax nodded. The Once-Ler suddenly pulled him into a hug. "I'm sorry." He whispered.  
"What for Beanpole?" The Lorax asked, breaking free from the embrace.  
"Nothing." The Once-Ler said. He smiled. It really was nothing. It had all been a bad dream.

He gets up and realizes he's fully clothed in the things he had worn before the Thneed became big. He smiled. He looked around for his Thneed and found it. He contemplated destroying it but then he remembered how warm it was and put it around his neck, like a scarf. He wasn't going to let the tree he had chopped down to make it go to waste.

"You gonna go try to sell that thing again?" The Lorax asked.  
"No." The Once-Ler said.  
"No?"  
"No." The Once-Ler looked at the Lorax's shocked expression and couldn't keep in his laugh. He found his hat that had fallen off his head when the animals placed him on his bed and picked it up. He brushed off some dirt that had found it's way onto it and put it on.  
"Why not?" The Lorax asked.  
"Because." The Once-Ler said. He made his way to the kitchen, put his pink apron on and began making pancake batter. The Lorax shrugged and dropped the subject.

Once the Once-Ler had made a large heap of pancakes he allowed the animals to eat some. He took a couple for himself and ate them quickly, not realizing how hungry he'd been. The Lorax took one although he was suspicious and tried it. He found the taste was to his liking and quickly finished it. The Once-Ler made another few heaps of Pancakes until everyone was full. He smiled and took the apron off. He left the house, leaving the door ajar so the animals could leave, and began walking in the forest of Truffular trees, taking in how beautiful it was.

"So, Beanpole." The Lorax said, catching up to him.  
"What is it Mustache?" The Once-Ler asked the Lorax.  
"What happened in that dream?"  
"What do you mean?" The Once-Ler asked, pretending not to know what the Lorax was talking about. He looked up at a rare Blue-Tuft Truffular tree.  
"Well.. you were crying..." The Lorax said, worried for the human.  
"It's nothing, just a bad dream." The Once-Ler said, drawing his attention away from the tree and back to the Lorax.  
"Yeah, but after you woke up you gave up on selling the thingy..." The Lorax said. "You'd been so.. Sure.. That it would sell and you'd become successful and then you just gave up.." The Lorax looked at the Once-Ler. "Even you have to realize that looks pretty suspicious.."

The Once-Ler looked at the Lorax. Anger flared in his eyes. "Maybe I don't want to be successful." He snapped at him, covering his mouth afterwards as he realized what he said.  
"What?" The Lorax asked, confused. He had thought that that was what the Once-Ler wanted more than anything. What had suddenly changed his mind? It had to be something to do with the dream.  
"Nothing." The Once-Ler said quickly, he had always wanted to be successful but then that dream. That dream changed everything. He didn't want to kill the forest, the place he had finally been able to call his home. It just felt right for him to be there, even if that meant giving up on his Thneed.  
"If you say so Beanpole." The Lorax said.

The Once-Ler smiled and went back to his house. He flopped onto the bed and closed his eyes. An image of himself in a green suit and a black top had flashed in the darkness. He shouted out. He was never going to become that man. He was never going to let his Thneed become big and he was never going break the promise he made to the Lorax.

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**So... Yeah..**

**I hope you liked reading that as much as I liked writing it. I've been trying to think of a subject for a fanfic for this since watching the film a few days ago and then it suddenly came to me that it could have been a dream..**

**Anyway, don't forget to leave me a review or a fave if you enjoyed it, each and every one means so much to me!**

**That's about it.. Till next time I guess...**

_**Ebil**_


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